an arab accent. but she's as american as you are. >> totally american. >> absolutely. >> that's extraordinary. >> good for her. thanks for watching around the world". "cnn newsroom" starts right now. >> right now, freezing weather is plaguing most of the united states. ice on highways and overpasses making driving dangerous and flying isn't much better. already 1500 flights have been canceled. also right now, president obama heading to south africa where crowds are mourning and celebrating nelson mandela. we'll have a live report on the president's expected role in tomorrow's public memorial service. and right now, 85-year-old merrill newman resting at his home in california after spending more than a month in captivity in north korea. he's also sharing new details about his ordeal, including the menu.

hello, i'm wolf blitzer reporting today from washington. it doesn't seem to matter where you are in the united states today. we all have one thing in common. pretty much miserable weather. if you're headed to the airport, pag your patience. more than a thousand flights already have been canceled today. on the roads, it's no better. this was the scene in yonkers, outside new york city. police say 30 people were injured in a 24-plus car pile-up on the bronx river parkway late last night. one reminder, falling ice posing a huge threat. a sheet of melting ice fell to the ground in plano, texas, damaging at least eight parked cars. thankfully no people were on street at the time. cnn is covering all these developing weather stories for you. our meteorologist chad meyers will be joining us in a moment with the forecast. let's go to cnn's row sal flores first. she's watching the comings and goings out there on the new jersey turnpike. what's going on out there, rosa?

>> wolf, up with of the things we're dealing with is low visibility. so all the drivers out there using their low beams, there is precipitation in certain areas so they're using the windshield wipers and it's in the 30s. they're also cranking up the heat. let me set the scene for you. you can see that visibility is low. the clouds are low. so drivers are being very careful out there. you're looking at the new jersey turnpike. traffic is moving at a pretty good clip right now. the office of emergency management tells us they're dealing with two things, the southern part of new jersey, ponding and flooding. and the northern parts of the state, they're dealing with snow, sleet, ice on the roads. so it can be treacherous. the department of transportation said they were preparing for the absolute worst. they have about 2,000 pieces of equipment that can spread salt or that can plow the roads. they used 800 overnight and right now, they are assessing the situation. i talked to state police, as

well. they tell me there are no major accidents in the state right now. but of course, they're monitoring that situation. we talked to a couple of drivers so they could tell us a little bit about the road conditions. here's what one had to say. >> it wasn't too bad. it was really slow going. it was the speed was about 10 to 15 miles per hour for a long time. then the delaware memorial bridge be was closed for a while because there was an accident on it. took about seven hours to go what normally takes two hours. >> reporter: and here's the bad news. more snow is expected, wolf. so the state assessing the situation right now to develop a plan for the coming hours and, of course, for tomorrow, as well. wolf? >> rosa, thanks very much. let's get the forecast. chad myers is standing by at the cn severe weather center. much of the u.s. experiencing these miss rablt freezing weather conditions at the same time, is that right, chad? >> yeah, we have blizzards going on in the can the das, temperatures, wind while factors

20, 30 degrees below zero. in the northeast, snows like this snow totals from newark, delaware at 12 inches and even into philadelphia had eight inches of snow with this. laguardia, newark, philadelphia all slope. that's the story for the rest of the day. this isn't going to get better really today. we'll see another round of snow tomorrow for you, wolf. 4 to 6 more inches for bwy, bca. up to philadelphia, it's not here now but another small low is running up the same place that the low moved up this weekend. we're not going to see enough ice or as much ice in d.c. as we saw. this is going to be a snow event. snow covering up the icy stuff already there. it starts to snow tomorrow morning in d.c. i suspect there will be many school closings, up to bwi into baltimore and philadelphia and then offshore. this is a quick hitter. it's gone in 12 hours from when it starts. but 4 to 6 inches in 12 hours

will put the beltway and a lot of roads at a standstill. by wednesday it's completely gone. minot, it is 3 below zero. that's the thermometer. that's when you look at that red alcohol in the thermometer. it says 3 below. when you walk outside, your face feels like 21 below. so do all the pets and all the animals out there, make sure the pets have some kind of cover from this wind. make sure that they will have water or at least maybe just bring them inside if you can, wolf. this is really cold. >> excellent advice from chad as usual. chad, thank you. we'll stay on top of the weather story for all viewers. nearly 100 world leaders are making the trek to south africa right now to honor nelson mandela. crowds continue to gather outside his home to mourn his death and to celebrate miss life. tomorrow as many as 80,000 people will pack the soccer stadium in johannesburg for the official memorial service.

one of the last known photos to of mendel la has been made public. the touching image shows the iconic leader holding hands with his 3-year-old grandson taken in may. last hour, archbishop desmond tutu took part in a special tribute. in his remarks, he said what a fantastic gift god gave to us in this mandela. president obama is among those heading heads of state traveling to south africa right now. the president and the first lady left this morning aboard air force one. they're accompanied by the former president george w. bush and laura bush and the former secretary of state hillary clinton. they'll be joined in south africa by bill clinton and former president jimmy carter and mrs. carter. our white house correspondent brianna keilar is standing by. brianna, what do we know about the president's itinerary and his specific role in the memorial service? >> well, wolf, he will be among six foreign dignitaries who will

be giving remarks during what is really an extensive program to take place in south africa honor agmandela. he is on this historic flight to what we're expecting will be the largest gathering of world leaders in their history. we're told by a white house official this is not something he had worked on until he was i guess instructed or invited by the south african government to make these remark at the memorial service. but there's also another sort of historic element to this trip, this flight that president obama is on right now. imagine this, sitting around the conference table of the private conference room on board air force one, the obamas as well as formser president george w. bush and first lady laura bush and former secretary of state hillary clinton, also, of course, the former first lady and all were told we're told by a white house official discussing their various experiences with nelson mandela which span over three administrations. so quite a conversation you'd want to be a fly on the wall

for. we are expecting, as well, that president obama may be touching base with nelson mandela's wife gra gracamachel, certainly something he's interested in doing. this is a such a logistical feat when you think of all these world leaders going to south africa and how big an effort this is to get president obama there. because mandela has been ill for so long, unfortunately, this is something they had some time to plan for. >> there could be a little diplomatic awkwardness on the podium. the program has been released by the south african government. we see president obama will pay special tribute. these are tributes by foreign dignitaries. six selected. the leaders from the u.s., brazil, the haven't of china, namib namibia -- libya and president

raul castro of cuba will be up on the same stage with the president of the united states. i wonder if they'll shake hands, exchange words. could be a little awkward since the u.s. does not have the full diplomatic releases with canada and still cuba is regarded as a state sponsor of international terrorism. have they said anything at the white house about this? >> the white house has not commented on this specifically. i expect we'll get some comment on this as we just have gotten the program really in the time that president obama has been on board air force one and a lot of firms are trav-- officials are traveling with him. former cold war enemies have had very much limited ties. there's been some conciliatory language in recent years, but certainly this is not any sort of relationship that you see on a day to day basis the way president obama has with other leader, but i think what's sort of fascinating and that a lot of people looking at this program

and are fascinated by the fact that president obama is speaking first and raul castro is speaking last that in a way it signifies how much of a unifier nelson mandela was not only in his life but also in his death that you have these very interesting and disparate folks going to be at this event in south africa, wolf. >> when he was inaugurated back in 194, nelson mandela, al gore, the then vice president of the united states, represented the united states but representing cuba at the time was fidel castro, then president of cuba. there was an awkward moment at that time. we'll watch that closely. thanks very much, brianna keilar at the white house. a long list of pending problems with very little time to make progress. that's what congress is looking at as they get closer and closer to going back to vacation. we're looking at priorities hanging in the balance right now. i'm beth...

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the defense secretary chuck hagel arrived in pakistan today for talks on security and u.s. drone strikes. pakistan is pushing the u.s. to halt the drone strikes while the u.s. is urging pakistan to keep supply routes into afghanistan open. during a stop over the weekend in afghanistan, the defense secretary visited u.s. troops, thanked them for their service. he did not, repeat not meet with the afghan president hamid karzai who apparently didn't invite him in for coffee despite what the u.s. has done in afghanistan over these years, spending hundreds of billions of dollars, losing thousands of troops. i was pretty shocked that hagel, the defense secretary of the united states, was not apparently invited by president

hamid karzai for a meeting. it's pointed though because the afghan leader has delayed signing a security agreement to extend the u.s. military troop presence in afghanistan for another ten years. hagel downplayed the significance of not meeting with karzai and says at afghan defense minister assured him the security agreement will be signed in "a timely manner." right now about 50,000 u.s. troops are still in afghanistan, supposed to stay most of them throughout this year but all of them are supposed to be out by the end of 2014. the coming year unless there's a security agreement in place. then there could be eight to 10,000 for 12,000 u.s. troops for another ten years at a cost of billions of dollars a year. so far karzai has refused to meet the u.s. conditions to allow those kinds of troops to remain in the country. a very awkward situation between the u.s. and afghanistan right now. other news we're following. they've earned the reputation of

the do nothing congress but lawmakers on capitol hill have a long list of to do things that they will need to do leading up to the holiday recess, among the items on the list, budget negotiations to prevent another partial government shutdown, passing a foreign bill to avoid a dramatic increase in milk prices, deciding whether to pass an extension of the unemployment insurance payments and a defense spending bill delayed in the senate. joe johns is here with more on the unfinished business we're watching. budget negotiations. they really haven't worked on a budget since 2011 but they're close this time. >> that's right. the target this deadline is the end of the week. if they miss the dead line, there's no immediate consequence except more stress and pressure and there's still optimism they can reach some kind of meager deal that will heads off another showdown like we had last year even though this isn't the best environment for democrats and republicans to try to work together. what they want is a deal that

sets spending levels for fiscal year 2014 and 2015, and this would be a deal that gives the agencies a work around from the iminfamous budget control act which sort of tied the hands of the agencies and slowed spending to an electrical. >> there's another sensitive issue that's part of all of this. extending unemployment benefits for the long-term unemployed, if you will. the kentucky senator rand paul thinks that expending those benefits beyond the current 26 weeks would be a disservice to all of those unemployed. listen to what he said. >> there was a study that came out a few months ago, and it said it if you have a worker unemployed for four weeks and one on 99 weeks which would you hire it, nearly 100% say they will always hire the person out for weeks. when you allow them to be out for 99 weeks, you're causing them to be part of this perpetual unemployed group in

our economy. >> you know, i want to get your response on what we just heard from him, but there's a news conference under way. the sandy hook elementary school parents are now speaking out. i want to hear what they're saying. >> since that day, we have been overwhelmed by the outpouring of kindness, love, prayers, generosity, received from the entire world. to simply say thank you is not enough to express our sincere gratitude. in the mid sti of our grief, we have come to realize that we want our loved ones to be remembered for the lives they lived and how they touched our hearts. we have been uplifted by the support of so many people. and we would like to keep that spirit of unity and love alive in all we do to remember those we so dearly miss. it is with this in mind that we

have created the my sandy hook family.org website. this website is intended to serve as a singular place of sharing, communication, and contact with the families of those who lost their lives that day. my sandy hook family.org allows us the opportunity to honor those taken from us so violently. krist krista. >> well, i'm joe and. -- joann. we ask that you understand that each of us, each family is unique in our own experiences following this tragedy and we each have our own voice and perspective. by creating this website, we hope to offer an opportunity to communicate with our families

and honor the ones that we love. while at the same time, respecting each family's individual journey and unique experiences. on the one-year mark of this horrific day, we know that many people across the country will be thinking of our children and educators. so tragically taken from us. and wondering how to help. we ask that you consider performing an can the an of kindness or volunteering with a charitable organization in your own local community. we hope that some small pressure of good may be returned to the world. this concludes our family statement. i'd like to add that our family

will be lighting a candle on the eve of 12/14, the last night we spent with our sweet charlotte. >> and we will be lighting a candle for our beautiful little girl jessica. >> we will be lighting a candle on behalf jessie mccord louis. >> we're going to light a candle in honor of our daughter emily. >> we will light a candle for my mom dawn. >> we will light a candle for my older sister, victoria. >> we will be lighting a candle for my sweet boy jack. >> we will be lighting a candle in honor of our beautiful girl grace. >> we will be lighting a candle

for our gorgeous daughter avile. >> we'll be lighting a candle for our beautiful daughter anna [ speaking foreign language ] >> we will be lighting a candle for our sweet son daniel. >> we'll be lighting a candle for my daughter lauren. >> we will light a candle for jace. >> we will be lighting a candle for our irrepressible benny. >> that concludes the formal statement. thank you.

>> and our deepest deepest condolences to those wonderful, wonderful families. our own poppy harlow is covering the story for us. we'll take a quick break. we'll be right back. so ally bank has a raise your rate cd that won't trap me in a rate. that's correct. cause i'm really nervous about getting trapped. why's that? uh, mark? go get help! i have my reasons. look, you don't have to feel trapped with our raise your rate cd. if our rate on this cd goes up, yours can too. oh that sounds nice. don't feel trapped with the ally raise your rate cd. ally bank. your money needs an ally. ♪ ♪

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a pause today after a big jump on friday. the s&p 500 and the dow both soared after the jobs report friday morning. we're checking the big board right now. the dow jones up about 38 points. investors are now waiting to see retail sales, inflation numbers both due out later this week. it's official.

the newly merged american airlines and u.s.ways now the world's biggest airline. they signed the final deal this morning. the u.s. justice department orally tried to block the merger saying it would hurt consumers. american airlines ceo doug parker spoke to us this morning and addressed concerns about airfares going up. >> what i know is, this merger won't have any impact on that. this is a merger of two airlines that are highply complimentary. only 12 lapse overlap. we need all the airports we have, we need all the employees. we're not going to reduce the supply of seats. so nothing about this merger should result in anything changes on prices that wouldn't have happened otherwise. >> the new airline will fly under the american airlines name, by the way. former san diego mayor bob filner appeared in court last hour to hear his sentence. he was given 90 days of home confinement and three years probation. he has to wear a gps device so

he can be tracked. before the sentence, he apologized to his family, former students and to the women he, quote, hurt. as part of the plea bargain, he pleaded guilty to the sexually harassing more than three women. though more than a dozen women came forward with complaints. he resigned as the mayor in august. still ahead, newly disclosed documents allege the np sa is not only gathering data from france and germany but also from various places that you might not know about. we're going to explain the latest spying allegations. that's next. ya know, with new fedex one rate you can fill that box and pay one flat rate. i didn't know the coal thing was real. it's very real... david rivera. rivera, david. [ male announcer ] fedex one rate. simple, flat rate shipping with the reliability of fedex.

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they say it's gone too far. now they want to put a stop to it, some of the nation's largest technology companies have signed an open letter asking the obama administration and congress to rein in government surveillance. for more, let's go out to san francisco. cnn's dan simon is standing by with the latest. why did these technology companies write this letter right now? >> wolf, the most important thing for any company to have whether you're selling a product or providing a service is the trust of your customers. and clearly, these technology

companies, the biggest ones on the planet, facebook, google, apple, microsoft, et cetera, are worried about a possible erosion of trust among its users after these nsa disclosures became public and edward snowden became a household name. they have called on the government and the president to show some leadership and provide restraint when it comes to surveillance and written this open letter. it reads in part "the balance in many countries has tipped too far in favor of the state and away from the rights of the individual." wolf, this united and extraordinary show of support among these technology companies really shows that they are deeply concerned about users' privacy and about information continuing exposes. information that may include e-mails or text messages or contacts or the web sites that people serve. that is why they've written this letter. >> in part, it could affect their bottom line, as well. that could be a motivating factor, right? >> no question about it. if people are fearful of using

these services, that could affect people going to these sites and that will cost these companies money. now, the official line from the u.s. intelligence authorities is that the average person has nothing to worry about, they're really targeting foreign citizens they're, but of course, wolf, there be deep skepticism regarding that. the question is whether this show of muscle by technology leaders will cause the president and congress to do anything about it. >> dan simon with the latest on that. meanwhile, edward snow deny's documents are also disclosing u.s. and british spies have infiltrated online gaming, specifically world of war craft and second life. brian todd is here with this part of the story. what's going on? >> wolf, apparently according to these reports in the guardian and "new york times," they got documents from edward snowden for their information. they say that the nsa and its british counterpart called the gchq have undertaken a massive campaign in the last six years

or so since about 2006 to tap into people playing world of war craft, second life and the xbox console. the reason they're tapping into this stuff is that according thto those reports, they fear terrorists could use it to plot attacks. these video games have certain features that militant groups and criminal groups value, meaning the ability to create a fake identity, voice and text chat capability, the ability for players to. >> he can to each other in realtime. terrorist groups value those capabilities. they could go on there and create characters to communicate with each other and possibly plot attacks. in some cases real life spies from the nsa and british agency according to the reports in the times and guardian have created make believe characters themselves to play in these

games and interact with other game players to try to get information or try to recruit informers. we contact account the nsa. they have no comment on these reports in the goddian and at "new york times." they september us a statement saying their mission is centered on valid foreign intelligence targets. it comes back to the arguments the nsa not supposed to spy on americans within the united states but they can conduct some of this surveillance on game plarsz now who may be overseas. we couldn't get comment yet. we're working on it, getting comment from the companies that make these games. >> is there any indication that a terrorist or terrorists or a tear error network has been stymied or stopped or apprehended as a result of these gamesers surveillance? >> no indication yet these programs have caught terrorists. they have discovered instances on the world of war craft games with are there are accounts that are related to militant groups playing the game, meaning some

people belonging to groups may be playing the games but not necessarily for nefarious purposes. maybe for fun. this is a massive program right now. to our knowledge, according to reports, not necessarily successful yet in catching terrorists. >> all right. we learn an something i guess every day. >> careful on those games. >> thanks very much. it's a heartbreaking anniversary. we heard from newtown victims' families just a few minutes ago. town officials also spoke out today. we're going to hear from them. our own poppy harlow is stadding by.

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it's been nearly one year

since 26 children and teachers were killed at the sandy hook elementary school by a lope gunman. as you heard here just a few minutes ago, parents and others in newtown, connecticut, are speaking out right now, very emotionally about the coming anniversary. poppy harlow has been tracking the story from new york. poppy, what are the issues coming up today for this community? >> well, as you know, wolf, we are just a few days before that one-year mark, sat add december 14th that will mark one year since that absolutely tragic shooting in newtown, connecticut. so the families of a number of the victims who were killed on that day came out and gave a very short prepared statement. i want to highlight some of it. they said, of course, december 14th changed our lives forever. they thanked everyone for the outpouring of support that has come their way and talked about how each family is going through this differently in their own unique way and that the public needs to understand that. they also announced that they

have started a website for those families, my sandy hook family.org. they say it's a way for them to help one another to communicate, to being to and get through this in their open way. at the end of the statement, it was prepared, each family member came by and said that they will be lighting a candle for the loved one that they lost. and that really hit me. we weren't expecting that. and they described either their children or their sister or whomever they lost in their own way say saing gorgeous or irrepressible or wonderful. you could feel it coming through the screen watching this. i also want to tell you this follows a press conference held just two hours ago in newtown, also by city officials. and the main message of this press conference was, we are doing this now to answer your questions because we really are pleading with the media to stay away from newtown on saturday. >> on that one-year mark saying we need our own time to heal

without the presence of all the media. here is what pat llodra, said like the mayor of the town, the first selectman. >> we're trying to respect the world's interest in us and we've certainly blisted from that interest in many ways but we also have a real need for our community to gain its foothold a little bit, particularly around this very difficult time. so -- and we pay a price when the media is here because we're a small community. there's many of you and not so many of us. so we may pay that emotional and economic toll and really, we were hurt very badly last year, as you all know. we don't need to be reminded. we don't need to relive it. we live it every day. we carry it with us. we were fully aware you have our tragedy. we're trying to say please give us the chance to grow into that happy healthy place that loved children and families, that has great schools. we know who we are.

that's our destiny but we need you to help us get there by please staying away. >> and wolf, i can tell you as for cn, we will be covering, obviously, that one-year mark but we will not do it from new two town. we will respect their wishes and not be there. this is clearly a day to be on their own as we're hearing from all of those members of the community there. but incredibly difficult to watch. the police chief also spoke and said they'll have extra law enforcement on hand this weekend. we heard from the interim superintendent of the schools who talked about the kids and how the grieving happens at different times. he said things occur at all different times. so they have a long way 0 go, this community certainly bulging together. >> that was heart breaking to hear the parents and loved ones speak of those who were killed one year ago. thanks very much. this note to viewers, don't miss anderson cooper's special be report this wednesday night honoring the children, newtown one year later airs 10:00 p.m.

eastern. an 85-year-old american held inside the repressive regime of north korea now free. i'll speak with former new mexico governor bill richardson about merrill newman's ordeal. [ female announcer ] thanks for financing my first car. thanks for giving me your smile. thanks for inspiring me. thanks for showing me my potential. for teaching me not to take life so seriously. thanks for loving me and being my best friend.

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a power shift going on in north korea right now. the once powerful uncle of kim

jung un has been removed from his post in the government accused of trying to build their own power base and sell off the country's resources. this is the same man to help this had kim jong-un transition to power two years ago. analysts say his removal indicates he's getting rid of the so-called old guard close to his father. the sudden release of merrill newman, the 85-year-old american veteran was abruptly pulled off a plane leaving income abheld for more than a month. he was released overnight friday, made his way back to the united states. >> it's been a great, great homecoming. and i'm tired, but ready to be with my family now, and thank you all for the support. >> the korean war veteran told the santa cruz sentinel he was well fed while being held and he was kept in a hotel room, not a

jail cell. he says he was comfortable if not even bored during his detention. joining us now on the phone is the former new mexico governor, the former u.s. ambassador to the united nations, bill richardson. i was surprised. i don't know about you, governor, that he was released sort of unilaterally without you or former president bill clinton or jimmy carter or someone going there to very surprising. that he was suddenly deported, that there was no requirement for a dialogue with a high profile person. what is also interesting was that he was kept in a hotel. that he was not kept in a prison, which means that the north koreans did not mean to keep him in prison very long. i think once he made his confession, but it's very bizarre, the way the new leader, kim jong-un, is handling these cases. as we both know, there's another

american, kenneth bay, that is still in prison. one year, no requests for dialogue. in fact, an american envoy went out there, and the north koreans said, go back. we're not ready to negotiate. so very inconsistent. but it shows that the new young leader, kim jong-un, is firmly in control. he's consolidating his power. he's purging the old guard and anybody that he thinks is going to be a challenge to him. >> you know, what's really strange, and i'm curious to get your thoughts, governor, on this, is that dennis rodman, the nba star, the retired nba star, he's heading back to north korea to see his supposed good friend kim jong-un at the end of this month. how does that fit into all of this weird stuff that's coming out of there? >> well, it shows -- i don't know if it's the immaturity of the new leader. it shows that he and rodman have

struck up a friendship. the problem is that rodman doesn't use that friendship to help with kenneth bay, at least get him out. maybe he will do that. but it shows that kim jong-un is still not ready to meet anybody that has some substance, foreign policy background. he hasn't done that with the chinese. he hasn't done it with south koreans. again, it shows that he is probably right now spending his time consolidating his power, and he's replaced various generals from the old guard, keeping control of the military, the communist party. but what is so interesting is how publicly he humiliated his uncle in talking about his ouster. that they went out of their way to show that this was a very visible ouster. and i have never seen that done in north korea before with his father. they ousted people, but it was

done on a more quiet basis. >> if dennis rodman leaves north korea with kenneth bay, the american sentenced to a long term, a prison sentence for apparently doing some missionary work, supposedly, in north korea, that would be encouraging to get the other american out, and dennis rodman would be praised if he were to leave together with kenneth bay, right? >> that's right. and rodman should concentrate on doing that. i don't think rodman takes my advice very well, but that would be a big clue, to bring kenneth bay back. he's been there a year. he's in bad physical condition. his family is suffering. he should come home, and if rodman can pull it off, that is great. but rodman is not sohown signs f being interested in kenneth bay. i hope that changes. >> i think he did issue a statement early on, urging the north koreans to release kenneth

bay. let's see what he does on the ground. we know he has a good relationship with kim jong-un, the new leader, two years in power. if he can bring home kenneth bay, that would be excellent work for dennis rodman. he would be praised if he were to do so. if you're watching, dennis, make the effort, bring kenneth home. governor, thanks very much. >> thank you very much, wolf. >> poets and presidents are among those remembering nelson mandela. among them, maya angelou. she shares her thoughts and memories when we come back. didn't come with a warning. today her doctor has her on a bayer aspirin regimen to help reduce the risk of another one. if you've had a heart attack, be sure to talk to your doctor before you begin an aspirin regimen.

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feelings on the passing of nelson mandela. >> dr. angelou, i watched the poem you wrote and receipted in memory of president mandela. one of the things you struck me, you referred to him as david, not just south africa's david, out our david, and our gideon. >> the truth is we have many of us are davids. a man, a woman, we can all be that particular person. who has enough courage to stand up and say i am one. i have enough courage to dare to be a lover. not an indulger, but somebody who dares to love. now, that's what nelson mandela was about. he had enough courage to say i am -- you may call me. i am a person who dares to care for other human beings. and you see, one of the reasons i said this to you some time ago

when i had the pleasure of speaking to you, anderson cooper. i like the fact you have enough courage to stand up. courage is the most important of all the virtues. it's true. it's true. he was a courageous human being. and full of the idea that he was on a journey. and he had something to do. he had a place to be. and it's fabulous to realize that there's an old spiritual, old gospel song which is, i'm on my journey now. mt. zion, on my journey now, mt. zion. and i wouldn't take nothing, mt. zion, from my journey now, mt. zion. he was on a journey, and he knew it. and he had something to do. and this is what each of us has. if we have enough courage, we

can say, i'm on a journey. i have a charge to keep. >> nelson mandela will be buried on sunday, sunday morning. of course, we'll have live coverage. that's it for me. thank you very much for watching. see you back 5:00 p.m. eastern in "the situation room." "newsroom" continues right now with brooke baldwin. >> great to be with you on this monday. i'm brooke baldwin live from new york. thank you so much for watching cnn here. this very moment, confusion and grief on a college campus after the death of a popular student. and still, there are few answers about what happened in his final moments. let me take you back to friday when all this happened. this young man is robert cameron greeds. 23 years young. an honor student at a catholic school in texas. investigators say he got into an off-campus scuffle with a campus police off